Apparatus and Method for Forming Hair Buns and Curls

ABSTRACT

A hair retention device for forming a bun or curls in a person&#39;s hair is provided that is comprised of a cylindrical roll made of a mesh material. The cylindrical roll contains one or more strips of a material that are placed around the circumference of the roll and that grip a person&#39;s hair. The strips of material can be made of any material that can grip a person&#39;s hair and hold in place without causing serious discomfort to the user. Examples of the material include Velcro plastic, rubber, metal, silicone and the like. The ends of the cylindrical roll contain an attachment device that allows the ends of the cylindrical roll to attach together to form a circle or ring-like structure. The hair retention device can also include an elastic cord that can run internally in the hair retention device and the length of the cylindrical roll. The elastic cord can be used to synch the ring-like structure to a desired tightness, thus creating a bun with a desired circumference. The external slack of the internal elastic cord can be wrapped around the resultant bun, thus further securing the bun and holding it tightly in place.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/667,096 filed Jul. 2, 2012, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD

The present invention relates generally to an apparatus and method for forming a bun or curls in a person's hair.

BACKGROUND

Currently there are a number of hair accessory devices that assist in making buns and curls in a person's hair. Some of these accessories attempt to keep hair in a tight bun, but fail to meet the needs of the industry because they are difficult to use. Other accessories attempt to make buns more easily in hair, but are similarly unable to meet the needs of the industry because they do not grip the hair tight enough. Still other accessories seek to curl hair, but also fail to meet industry needs because they use heat which can harm hair and take longer to get the desired look.

It would be desirable to have an apparatus that can secure hair tightly in a bun without the use of any other accessories or devices such as hair pins. It would also be desirable to have an apparatus that can curl hair without the use of hair-damaging heat.

SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the claimed subject matter. This summary is not an extensive overview, and is not intended to identify key/critical elements or to delineate the scope of the claimed subject matter. Its purpose is to present some concepts in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

The apparatus described herein provides an advantage over the prior art in that it assists the user in curling the hair while it is being used to secure hair in a bun. It addresses the need therefore in the industry for an apparatus that easily holds hair in a bun, holds the bun tightly in place without the use of hairpins or any other devices, and curls the hair while it is in the bun and without the use of hair-damaging heat.

In one aspect of the invention, a hair retention device for forming a bun in a person's hair is provided, comprising: a flexible cylindrical roll having a first end and a second end, comprised of a pliable mesh material and one or more strips of a stiffer hair gripping material placed around a circumference of the roll; and an attachment device disposed at least one of the ends of the cylindrical roll to attach the ends together to form a loop or ring-like structure.

In other aspects of the invention, the mesh material is at least one of a soft, lightweight, and breathable material; and/or the stiffer hair gripping material grips via a hook and/or loop mechanism; and/or the stiffer hair gripping material is at least one of a plastic, rubber, metal, and silicone material; and/or the stiffer hair gripping material is substantially triangle-shaped; and/or further comprises an elastic cord internally disposed within and extending through a substantial length of the roll and exiting through an opening in at least one of the ends so as to be exposed, allowing the length of the roll to be shortened by a pulling of the exposed cord; and/or further comprises a retention bead disposed about the exposed elastic cord, the bead sized to prevent retraction of the exposed cord through the opening into the roll; and/or wherein the elastic cord exits each end of the roll; and/or further comprises a retention bead disposed about each exposed elastic cord, each bead sized to prevent retraction of the exposed cord through the opening into the roll; and/or wherein the attachment device is at least one of a snap, hook and loop, magnet, and button.

In another aspect of the invention, a method for forming a hair bun is provided, comprising: fabricating a flexible cylindrical roll having a first end and a second end, from a pliable mesh material with one or more strips of a stiffer hair gripping material around a circumference of the roll; placing an elastic cord within and extending through a substantial length of the roll, exiting through an opening in at least one of the ends so as to be exposed; connecting an attachment device to at least one of the ends of the cylindrical roll; placing the cylindrical roll at an end of one or more strands of a person's hair, so as to contact the hair gripping material to the hair; rolling the cylindrical roll upwards towards the scalp, thereby rolling the gripped hair with the roll; attaching the ends of the cylindrical roll together to form a ring-like structure; and pulling the elastic cord to tighten the ring-like structure of the roll.

In other aspects of the invention, a retention bead is attached to the exposed elastic cord, the bead being sized to prevent retraction of the exposed cord through the opening into the roll; and/or a circumference of the ring-like structure is adjusted by a pull strength on the cord; and/or an exposed slack cord is wrapped around a formed bun of the person's hair.

In yet another aspect of the invention, a device for forming a hair bun is provided, comprising: a flexible cylindrical means for wrapping hair, containing one or more strips of a stiffer hair gripping material around a circumference of the cylindrical means; end tensioning means, extending through a substantial length of the cylindrical means, exiting through an opening in at least one of the ends so as to be exposed; and attachment means coupled to at least one of the ends of the cylindrical means.

In other aspects of the invention, the stiffer hair gripping material is at least one of a plastic, rubber, metal, and silicone material; and/or wherein the stiffer hair gripping material is substantially triangle-shaped; and/or further comprising a retention means disposed about the exposed tensioning means, the retention means sized to prevent retraction of the exposed tensioning means through the opening into the cylindrical means; and/or wherein the tensioning means exits each end of the cylindrical means; and/or further comprises a retention means disposed about each exposed tensioning means, each retention means sized to prevent retraction of the exposed tensioning means through the opening into the cylindrical means.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a hair retention device for forming a bun or curls in a person's hair.

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the hair retention device shown in FIG. 1, with the two ends attached together to form a ring-like structure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Following below are more detailed descriptions of various embodiments of the invention described herein. In particular, the various embodiments disclosed herein describe a hair retention device that is comprised of a cylindrical roll and that can be used to form a bun or curls in a person's hair. It should be appreciated that various aspects of the subject matter introduced above and discussed in greater detail below may be implemented in any of numerous ways, as the subject matter is not limited to any particular manner of implementation. Examples of specific implementations and applications are provided primarily for illustrative purposes.

The invention now will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, which are intended to be read in conjunction with both this summary, the detailed description and any preferred and/or particular embodiments specifically discussed or otherwise disclosed. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of illustration only and so that this disclosure will be thorough, complete and will fully convey the full scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.

Referring to FIG. 1, a hair retention device 100 is shown that contains two ends 102 and 104, and an elongate, caterpillar-like roll body 106 that is cylindrical in nature. Device 100 can be comprised of any material that is lightweight and pliable. In one example embodiment, hair retention device 100 is comprised of a soft, lightweight, breathable, pliable mesh material.

As shown in FIG. 1, hair retention device 100 can contain one or more strips of material 108 that are capable of gripping a person's strands of hair. In an exemplary embodiment, strips of material 108 are made of a hook and loop (e.g., Velcro) material. However, strips of material 108 can be made of any material (plastic, rubber, metal, silicone and the like) that can grip a person's hair and hold it in place without causing serious discomfort to the user. Strips of material 108 allow hair retention device 100 to hold a person's hair in place, making it easy to roll and wrap the hair around the device. Strips of material 108 can be placed on hair retention device 100 in any configuration that will allow sufficient gripping of a person's hair. As shown in FIG. 1, in one example embodiment, s rips of material 108 can be vertically placed around the circumference of hair retention device 100. Hexagonal, longitudinal, spiral, and other orientations for material 108 are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of this disclosure.

In another embodiment, ends 102 and 104 of hair retention device 100 can attach together via an attachment device 110 that allows the ends of the cylindrical roll to attach together to form a circle or ring-like structure, as shown in FIG. 2. In one example embodiment, attachment device 110 can be comprised of a snap. In still other embodiments, attachment device 110 can be comprised of a hook and loop system (e.g., Velcro), a magnetic system, button or the like.

Referring again to FIG. 1, hair retention device 100 can also be comprised of an elastic cord 112 that can run internally in the hair retention device 100 and the length of the cylindrical roll. In one example embodiment, internal elastic cord 112 is comprised of a rubber-band like structure that is used in commercially-available hair bands. In another embodiment, the end of internal elastic cord 112 can contain a bead-like structure or any other type of structure 114 that can prevent the end of internal elastic cord 112 from retracting completely into the body 106 of hair retention device 100. In this way, a user can grasp the end of internal elastic cord 112.

As shown in FIG. 2, internal elastic cord 112 can be pulled at its end to synch the ring-like structure of hair retention device 100. In this way, the circumference of the ring-like structure of hair retention device 100 can be changed, depending on how much internal elastic cord 112 is pulled. In one embodiment, if internal elastic cord 112 is pulled sufficiently, as shown in FIG. 2, an amount of slack of the cord will be left hanging externally from hair retention device 100. In an exemplary embodiment, the external slack of internal elastic cord 112 can be wrapped around the formed bun in a person's hair so as to secure the bun that is formed by using hair retention device 100. In this way, the external slack of internal elastic cord 112 can act like a rubber band that further secures the bun and holds it tightly in place.

Hair retention device 100 can be comprised of any color, and any size that is sufficiently large to hold a person's hair in place in a bun. In one example embodiment, the color of hair retention device 100 can mimic the color of a person's hair—i.e., blonde, black, red, brown, etc. The size of hair retention device 100 can also be changed to manipulate the size of a curl that is desired in a person's hair—i.e., the smaller the size of the hair retention device, the tighter the resulting curls.

Other various embodiments of the invention include methods for forming a bun in a person's hair that include the steps of placing at the ends of one or more strands of a person's hair a hair retention device 100 that contains one or more strips of Velcro 108 that grip the person's hair, rolling the hair retention device 100 upwards towards the scalp, attaching ends 102 and 104 of the hair retention device 100 together to form a ring-like structure, and pulling an internal elastic cord 112 at the cord's end to synch the ring-like structure to a desired tightness, thus creating a bun with a desired circumference.

In still another embodiment, the external slack of internal elastic cord 112 can be wrapped around the resultant bun, thus further securing the bun and holding it tightly in place.

In another example embodiment, the method of forming a bun can also be used to form one or more curls in a person's hair. The method of forming one or more curls in a person's hair includes the steps of placing at the ends of one or more strands of a person's hair a hair retention device 100 that contains one or more strips of Velcro 108 that grip the person's hair, rolling the hair retention device 100 upwards towards the scalp, attaching ends 102 and 104 of the hair retention device 100 together to form a ring-like structure, and pulling an internal elastic cord 112 at its end to synch the ring-like structure to a desired tightness, thus creating a bun with a desired circumference. The slack of internal elastic cord 112 that hangs external to hair retention device 100 as a result of pulling internal elastic cord 112 can be wrapped around the resultant bun, thus further securing the bun and holding it tightly in place. The resultant bun can then be removed after a sufficient amount of time (for example, and without limitation, overnight) to form one or more curls in a person's hair. The circumference of the formed bun can be manipulated to create a desired size of a curl—i.e., the smaller the size of the bun, the tighter the curl.

While the various embodiments of the invention have been described above in terms of specific embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to these disclosed embodiments. Upon reading the teachings of this disclosure, many modifications and other embodiments of the invention will come to mind of those skilled in the art to which this invention pertains, and which are intended to be and are covered by both this disclosure and the appended claims. It is indeed intended that the scope of the invention should be determined by proper interpretation and construction of the appended claims and their legal equivalents, as understood by those of skill in the art relying upon the disclosure in this specification and the attached drawings. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A hair retention device for forming a bun in a person's hair, comprising: a flexible cylindrical roll having a first end and a second end, comprised of a pliable mesh material and one or more strips of a stiffer hair gripping material placed around a circumference of the roll; and an attachment device disposed at least one of the ends of the cylindrical roll to attach the ends together to form a loop or ring-like structure.
 2. The device of claim 1, wherein the mesh material is at least one of a soft, lightweight, and breathable material.
 3. The device of claim 1, wherein the stiffer hair gripping material grips via a hook and/or loop mechanism.
 4. The device of claim 1, wherein the stiffer hair gripping material is at least one of a plastic, rubber, metal, and silicone material.
 5. The device of claim 1, wherein the stiffer hair gripping material is substantially triangle-shaped.
 6. The device of claim 1, further comprising an elastic cord internally disposed within and extending through a substantial length of the roll and exiting through an opening in at least one of the ends so as to be exposed, allowing the the length of the roll to be shortened by a pulling of the exposed cord.
 7. The device of claim 6, further comprising a retention bead disposed about the exposed elastic cord, the bead sized to prevent retraction of the exposed cord through the opening into the roll.
 8. The device of claim 1, wherein the elastic cord exits each end of the roll.
 9. The device of claim 8, further comprising a retention bead disposed about each exposed elastic cord, each bead sized to prevent retraction of the exposed cord through the opening into the roll.
 10. The device of claim 1, wherein the attachment device is at least one of a snap, hook and loop, magnet, and button.
 11. A method for forming a hair bun, comprising: fabricating a flexible cylindrical roll having a first end and a second end, from a pliable mesh material with one or more strips of a stiffer hair gripping material around a circumference of the roll; placing an elastic cord within and extending through a substantial length of the roll, exiting through an opening in at least one of the ends so as to be exposed; connecting an attachment device to at least one of the ends of the cylindrical roll; placing the cylindrical roll at an end of one or more strands of a person's hair, so as to contact the hair gripping material to the hair; rolling the cylindrical roll upwards towards the scalp, thereby rolling the gripped hair with the roll; attaching the ends of the cylindrical roll together to form a ring-like structure; and pulling the elastic cord to tighten the ring-like structure of the roll.
 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising attaching a retention bead to the exposed elastic cord, the bead being sized to prevent retraction of the exposed cord through the opening into the roll.
 13. The method of claim 11, further comprising adjusting a circumference of the ring-like structure by a pull strength on the cord.
 14. The method of claim 11, further comprising wrapping an exposed slack cord around a formed bun of the person's hair.
 15. A device for forming a hair bun, comprising: a flexible cylindrical means for wrapping hair, containing one or more strips of a stiffer hair gripping material around a circumference of the cylindrical means; end tensioning means, extending through a substantial length of the cylindrical means, exiting through an opening in at least one of the ends so as to be exposed; and attachment means coupled to at least one of the ends of the cylindrical means.
 16. The device of claim 15, wherein the stiffer hair gripping material is at least one of a plastic, rubber, metal, and silicone material.
 17. The device of claim 15, wherein the stiffer hair gripping material is substantially triangle-shaped.
 18. The device of claim 15, further comprising a retention means disposed about the exposed tensioning means, the retention means sized to prevent retraction of the exposed tensioning means through the opening into the cylindrical means.
 19. The device of claim 15, wherein the tensioning means exits each end of the cylindrical means.
 20. The device of claim 19, further comprising a retention means disposed about each exposed tensioning means, each retention means sized to prevent retraction of the exposed tensioning means through the opening into the cylindrical means. 